Toy cannon.



No. 779,093. PATENTED JAN. 3, 1905. R. P. MITCHELL.

TOY CANNON.

APPLICATION FILED DEO.23, 1903.

WITNESSES: INVENTOR.

6} fiw L B 4'' 5 Patented January 3, 1905.

UNITED Srmras PATENT @FFICE,

ROBERT F. MITCHELL, OF NEW HAVEN, CONNECTICUT.

TOY CANNON.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 779,093, dated January 3, 1905.

Application filed December 23,1903. gerial No. 186,305.

To all whom, it may concern:

Be it known that I, ROBERT F. MITCHELL, a citizen of the United States, and a resident of New Haven, in the county of New Haven and State of Connecticut, have invented a certain new and useful Improved Toy Cannon, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to toy cannon or firearms adapted to shoot blank cartridges.

Toy cannons are supposed to be used only for blank cartridges, but they are frequently used for ball-cartridges, and many accidents that occur could be traced directly to such use. My improved cannon is not only designed strictly for blank cartridges, but is so congtructed that blank cartridges only can be use To enable others to understand my invention, reference is had to the accompanying drawings, in which- Figure 1 is a section through the axle and a side elevation of the cannon with the nigh wheel removed. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal section of the cannon and cartridge-holder, showing a blank cartridge therein. Fig. 3 is a detail view of the barrel. Fig. 4: is adetail perspective view of the cartridge-holder.

Its construction and operation are as fol lows:

1 represents the barrel, having the rectangular hole or transverse opening 2 therethrough intermediate of the bore 3 and the firing-pin 4:.

5 is a cartridge-holder having the hole 6 therethrough for the blank cartridge 7, Fig. 2. The width of the holder is equal to the length of a blank cartridge or a cartridge without a ball, or, in other words, the width of the holder is such that a blank cartridge can readily be inserted therein and the holder inserted in the opening 2 of the barrel, but if a ball-cartridge is placed in the holder the ball will project through, so that the holder cannot be seated in the barrel and consequently cannot be fired. While the barrel may vary in size, so as to fire different-sized cartridges, each barrel will be furnished with a holder capable of receiving only blank cartridges, Which cartridges are of uniform length for each size and are a staple article on the market. Therefore it is impossible that an accident can occur by substituting a ball-cartridge for a blank.

The holder is provided with the shoulders 5, adapted to-rest on the barrel, which shoulders not only prevent the holder falling through the opening 2, but they also locate the mouth of the cartridge with respect to the bore of the barrel and the head of the cartridge with the firing-pin. If required, the chain 8 may be attached to the holder, so as to more readily remove said holder from the barrel.

9 is a pin on the end of the chain that may be used to extract the cartridge-shell from the holder.

The firing mechanism comprises the hammer 10, pivotally supported on the pin 11 of the carriage.

13 is a spring secured to the carriage, the free end of which engages the lug 1a of the hammer to throw the hammer forward to strike the firing-pin 4.

15 is the trigger, pivotally supported on the pin 16, and 17 is a spring attached to the trigger and anchored to the gun-carriage.

18 is the lanyard.

It will be understood that the cartridgeholder may be located at any point in the barrel between the bore and the hammer, for it can readily be seen that the holder can be set back far enough so that a projection on the hammer may strike directly on the head of the cartridge. This cartridge-holder feature is also applicable for any kind of a firearm specially adapted for firing blank cartridges.

The term hammer as applied by me to express the means for exploding the cartridge is intended to cover any of the well-known means used for this purpose, such as a firingbolt actuated by a spring and other like Wellknown devices.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is

The combination, in a toy cannon adapted for firing blank metal cartridges, comprising a barrel having a central bore and an opening formed transversely through said bore and barrel, the length of said'opening being, ap-

proximately, the length of a blank cartridge,

a removable cartridge-holder having a transverse bore therethrough, the length of which bore is, approximately. the length of a blank cartridge, said holder adapted to be inserted in the opening of the barrel, a stop on said holder to bring the bore of said holder and barrel in 'alineinent With each other, means connected with said barrel for exploding the IO cartridge, and means on said holder for removing it from the barrel to eject the exploded cartridge and recharge the same, for the purpose set forth.

Signed at Bridgeport, in the county of Fairfield and State of Connecticut, this 19th day 5 of December, A. D. 1903.

ROBERT F. MITCHELL.

VVitnessesr G. J. CHAFFEIJ, G. N. FINN. 

